Bò Bít Tết Recipe: Vietnamese Beef Steak with Egg and Pâté

Bò bít tết is the Vietnamese version of beef steak, and a lot of Vietnamese families eat it for breakfast. Slices of pounded beef are seared in a cast-iron pan with egg and liver pâté, then served with bánh mì, fried potatoes, salad and cucumber. It is simple enough for a busy morning if you prepare the beef ahead and cook everything else when you get up.

Ingredients

• 400 g boneless beef
• Potatoes
• Liver pâté
• Eggs
• Salad, cucumber
• Bread (bánh mì), to serve
• Tomato (optional)
• Vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar, tapioca starch and vegetable oil
• Oyster sauce (optional, instead of the oil in the marinade)

You also need a cast-iron pan.

How to make bò bít tết

1. Pound and marinate the beef

Wash the beef carefully and pat it dry with paper towels. Cut it into medium slices, then pound each slice with a pestle until the meat is soft.

Marinate the beef with a little salt, 1 teaspoon vegetable oil (or oyster sauce) and 1 teaspoon tapioca starch. Mix well and leave it for about 15–20 minutes.

2. Make the fries

Peel the potatoes and cut them into long, thin pieces. Soak them for 30 minutes in cold water with a little salt and some ice cubes. Pour off the water and let the potatoes dry, then deep-fry them in hot oil until golden.

3. Dress the cucumber and salad

Peel the cucumber and slice it thinly. Mix it with a little salt, sugar and vinegar, and adjust until it tastes sweet and sour.

Wash the salad carefully, 2–3 times, in water with a little salt. Cut it into short pieces and dress it the same way as the cucumber.

4. Cook the steak

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in the cast-iron pan. Lay the beef in one piece at a time and fry it over high heat. When the first side is cooked, turn it over and cook the other side. Add the egg and the pâté to the pan, and a few pieces of tomato if you like.

A cast-iron pan holds its heat for a long time, so the beef cooks very fast. Turn off the heat and set the pan on a wooden board. It is still hot enough to finish cooking the egg.

5. Serve

Bring the pan to the table with the bread, fries, salad and cucumber on a plate. Mix the egg and the pâté together as you eat.